How To Lodge A Planning Applciation

I sometimes get asked by my clients about what is involved in lodging a planning application. In this post I will give a concise guide on how to prepare and lodge a competent planning application.

Note I didn't say, 'a successful planning application'. The first thing you should know, is that planning applications have an element of uncertainty about them. A competent professional would never give a cast iron guarantee of getting planning permission granted for your project, just that they will get one registered. Neither should you expect this guide to give you the inside track or some special planning magic.

Every piece of guidance I discuss here is available from your local planning authority, I've just simplified it. I will also assume that if you are lodging your own application, either you, or someone you know, can produce architectural drawings. There is no use in knowing which forms to fill in, if you cant supply drawings with the application.

My architecture practice is based in Scotland, so this advice applies more to the Scottish system, although the rest of the UK is broadly simmilar. This post also assumes your property is not listed or in conservation area. The advice given here is correct at the time I wrote it, it may change however, so check with your local authority before you start!

First: Planning Permission exists to keep your neighbors, and society in general, happy. To put it another way, the Planning Department of your local council is not so concerned about your quality of life, as the quality of everyones lives. When planning applications are lodged, particularity for larger building like hospitals or airports, the planners will be most concerned about the likely effect the extra people in these building will have on local facilities. Will the roads be over-used, will the gas, electric and water supply be over-stretched, will the schools need more classrooms. They will also want to know about the likely environmental impact, on water systems, farm land, the landscape. When these big strategic question have been answered, then, finally, the planners start asking about the aesthetic value of the scheme, whether it looks good or not.

This same system, designed to deal with large infrastructure and commercial buildings, is adapted to deal with small domestic extensions too. It does this using a system called Delegated Powers.

The application for large buildings are decided by a committee, acting on the advice of professional planning officers. The committee is made up of your local councilors, politicians, who may or may not, have a sound grasp of architectural principals and urban design theory. The will however, have a very sound grasp of what gets votes. This is where the uncertainty in planning comes from, its human and political. Delegated Powers tries to avoid that, as the power to decide your modest dormer application, is delegated to a professional planning officer. They make the planning decision themselves. If enough of your immediate neighbors object to the application however, then it will be sent to committee, for the politicians to decide. You see, it pays to get on well with them next door.

Next: You need to know the meaning of the various definitions in a Planning Application Form. Each Scottish local authority has its own unique Planning Application form, the questions are always similar and the same terms appear on each one. Check out the Edinburgh Council forms here.

Applicant - thats you, it doesn't matter if you are hiring someone (like an Architect) to lodge the application for you, you are still the applicant.

Agent - The person preparing the application on behalf of the Applicant. Leave this blank if you are doing a DIY application.

Land Ownership - You do not need to own the land which is the subject of the application. This comes as a shock to most people, but anyone could lodge a planning application to turn your house into an amusement park! they would have to pay the lodgment fee and if they got the application approved, only your would benefit from it. Remember, no one has to build what they get permission for and a planning approval remains with the property, not the applicant who got the approval. You can sell your house with planning permission and the next person has the right to build what you applied for. Permission stays with the property, not the person, and is valid for five years from the day it is granted. All planning application forms require you to provide a land ownership certificate or to sign a deceleration stating that you have owned the land for a period of time prior to the application being made. Beware, If you knowingly make a false statement here, it is a crime. Your drawings must show the planning application boundary in red, any other land you own nearby that isn't involved in the application must be show with a blue boundary.

Notifiable Neighbors - We all have an idea of who our neighbors are but trust local government to make guidelines for it! A notifiable neighbor is someone who's property is close enough to yours and your application may negatively affect them so much that they have a special legal right to be informed in writing when the application is made. If it later transpires that a notifiable neighbor was not properly informed, the planning application can be rejected. Not only must you notify these people, you must also show the planning department who they are on a neighbor notification plan. I have included one of my neighbor notification plans here, I have placed a number on each property and a corresponding schedule on the side with their address. The names are blurred for privacy. Note how the site boundary is highlighted, there is a north point and a signed and dated stamp on the drawing showing it to be a "true copy of the original". This, and all other site maps and location plans, must be based on an accurate Ordnance Survey drawing. These can be purchased or download for a fee from various companies, I use Promap. You must register and most maps, like the one above, cost in the region of £15-25. Remember to ensure you buy the appropriate public license to the copyright and to display the copyright license number on the drawings.

All this is fine, as long as you are certain who is your neighbor. I wont go into great detail here because each local council published guidelines, sometimes with diagrams, showing how you determine who to notify. A good rule of thumb is, if in doubt - notify them. Don't try and hide the fact your are lodging an application, they will find out anyway.

The last thing to know about notifiable neighbors is that there are two kinds; Domestic and everybody else. If the neighboring property is a domestic home (house or apartment) you must send two notifications. Once to the owner, another to the occupier. This is because many properties are rented. If the property is anything other than a domestic home (field, forest, school, shop, prison etc) you must send three separate notifications; owner, occupier and lessee. If the property is abandoned or it is not immediately obvious where to send the notifications, the Land Registry can do a search, to find the owners, for a fee.

The alternative to all of this is an advert in the local media. Usually, you can send a fee to the planning department and they will take care of it.

Lodgment or Application Fees - at present in Scotland, the planning application fee for a house extension is £145 and for one new-build house is £260. See this Scottish Government guidance notice. The cheque is made out to which ever local council you are lodging the application with.

Full or Outline Planning Permission - Full permission is exactly that, full. It is the final word, you do not need another planning application, (though you will almost certainly need a Building Warrant). Outline Planning Permission however, is an agreement in principle to construct the type of building you have in mind. It does not specify the size, method or materials involved and for that reason isn't enough on its own to start building.

Finally: What kind of design will get planning approval? This really is an impossible question to answer, but that doesn't stop people asking me. It helps to have a good look at any guidelines published by your local council, this is Edinburgh Council's advice . Beyond that, I would strongly advise you seek the help of a professional.